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Become a data-driven company in five steps

Asking the right questions can deliver big results when you don’t have to struggle to find the answers. According to an IBM Institute for Business Value study, leaders are 166 percent more likely to make most decisions based on data, and 75 percent of leaders cite growth as the key source of value from analytics. But reaping the benefits of big data and analytics requires a strategic approach to data as well as a practical ability to execute on the answers to your questions.

IBM has developed a five-step progression that can help you foster a data-driven culture by starting simply and scaling your processes, approaches and strategies to allow you to turn information into insight. You’ll find full details in our new white paper, “Transform your business with data and analytics.” Here’s a sneak peek:

Step 1: Identify high-value opportunities

Start with a destination in mind. Find a project that will not only demonstrate fast positive impact, but also carries a lot of business value to build a foundation for future big data and analytics opportunities.

Step 2: Establish the right architecture and funding model

What resources do you have, what do you need to accomplish your goals and what kind of computing environment will you use? Think creatively and use this step to explore emerging technologies and determine the best way to fund this important work.

Take what you’ve learned and move forward. What other questions can you answer? What other processes could benefit from big data and analytics? Reuse technologies where appropriate, add new ones, and tweak and apply the lessons learned to new opportunities.

Step 5: Transform to a data-driven culture

By making big data and analytics a central, dominant focus of your business, you can now manage your data in increasingly strategic ways, turning it into information, knowledge and eventually, advantage. Embracing the transformative power of data and analytics will give your organization the competitive edge.

Answering the questions that fuel innovation requires strategies and technologies that can handle a vast amount of information and facilitate big data analytics that are fast, flexible, adaptable and scalable. Learn more about our five-step progression to a data-driven culture—download the white paper here.